"Keep it simple" - popular AA slogan

[Andy F]

 

When newcomers arrives in AA, they soon notice the slogans hanging on the walls of the meeting. Among them is the slogan "Keep it simple"

 

The newly sober member, still dazed and confused coud be forgiven for asking "keep what simple? What is it in AA that I'm supposed to keep simple"?

 

Here is an interpretation of this simple slogan that, as an agnostic in AA has meaning for me. Hope you like the blog

 

 

https://aaforagnostics.com/blog/keep-it-simple-meaning/

Edited January 19, 2023 by Andy F
Typos

[Purdey]

Must admit i have often wondered why alcoholics are not supposed to have a few beers then stop. Must be something complex that one drink can drive them back.

Knew some alcoholics but they seemed to have complex mental problems. 

[1FinickyOne]

1 minute ago, Purdey said:

why alcoholics are not supposed to have a few beers then stop.

yeah, it is called addiction... one drink leads to the next leads to loss of control... then the next thing you know they are embarrassing themselves in public... 

[Purdey]

23 minutes ago, 1FinickyOne said:

yeah, it is called addiction... one drink leads to the next leads to loss of control... then the next thing you know they are embarrassing themselves in public... 

Sounds quite complicated, psychologically. 

[1FinickyOne]

11 minutes ago, Purdey said:

Sounds quite complicated, psychologically. 

Well, I am sure it is no fun to wake up the next morning and have no idea where you are or what you did last night... so, to kick the habit, they go to these meetings and from the little I have seen, they replace one bad habit w/another... 

[Andy F]

3 minutes ago, 1FinickyOne said:

Well, I am sure it is no fun to wake up the next morning and have no idea where you are or what you did last night... so, to kick the habit, they go to these meetings and from the little I have seen, they replace one bad habit w/another... 

For an alcoholic, I believe AA meetings are a good habit. The bad habit is over thinking or "stinking thinking" as it has been called in AA. This seems true whether the alcoholic is drinking or not. The good thing about AA meetings is that they gradually replace negative thinking habits with positive ones ????????????

[Aussieroaming]

There are plenty of functional people that can be classified as alcoholics by others but not see the symptoms themselves, I was one of them. Because my job entailed working remotely I sometimes had jobs in "wet" camps and sometimes in "dry" camps. It was only that fact that these dry camps forced me to undergo sustained abstinence that I didn't end up a full blown alcoholic. The wet camp jobs were just endless nights getting smashed and R&R's were always an alcohol binge.

 

Now I rarely have a drink, I think the last drink I even had was in 2021. I lost the urge and the taste for alcohol a long time ago. It took me a long time to be comfortable with the non alcoholic lifestyle but I am grateful now that I was able to push alcohol aside. The decision to drink or not is still my choice but I currently prefer the not. I do sometimes miss a good red but there aren't too many good reds here, though wine connection always had a few good ones if one was willing to pay the price.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Andy F]

3 hours ago, Aussieroaming said:

There are plenty of functional people that can be classified as alcoholics by others but not see the symptoms themselves, I was one of them. Because my job entailed working remotely I sometimes had jobs in "wet" camps and sometimes in "dry" camps. It was only that fact that these dry camps forced me to undergo sustained abstinence that I didn't end up a full blown alcoholic. The wet camp jobs were just endless nights getting smashed and R&R's were always an alcohol binge.

 

Now I rarely have a drink, I think the last drink I even had was in 2021. I lost the urge and the taste for alcohol a long time ago. It took me a long time to be comfortable with the non alcoholic lifestyle but I am grateful now that I was able to push alcohol aside. The decision to drink or not is still my choice but I currently prefer the not. I do sometimes miss a good red but there aren't too many good reds here, though wine connection always had a few good ones if one was willing to pay the price.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks for sharing that Aussieroaming ????????????